BILL NUMBER: AB 623	INTRODUCED
	BILL TEXT


INTRODUCED BY   Assembly Member Lieber

                        FEBRUARY 19, 2003

   An act to amend Section 1191.10 of, and to add Section 374.9 to,
the Penal Code, relating to hazardous chemicals.


	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   AB 623, as introduced, Lieber.  Hazardous chemicals:  discharge:
warnings.
   Under existing law, any person who knowingly causes any hazardous
substance, as defined, to be deposited on roads, into waters, and in
other specified places, is guilty of a crime, with certain
exceptions.  Existing law, in addition, prohibits a person from
disposing of hazardous waste, as defined, at a facility that does not
have the proper permit, and from knowingly, or with reckless
disregard, disposing of any hazardous waste in a manner that causes
an unreasonable risk of specified consequences.
   This bill would prohibit a person from discharging or releasing,
in the course of doing business, a chemical known to the state to
cause cancer or reproductive toxicity into water or onto land where
the chemical passes or is likely to pass into any source of drinking
water, except as specified.  The bill would, in addition, prohibit a
person from exposing any individual, in the course of doing business,
to a chemical known to the state to cause cancer or reproductive
toxicity without first providing clear and reasonable warning to the
individual, except as specified.
   The bill would provide for different punishments for an act in
violation of these provisions based on whether the act was done
negligently or knowingly, and whether the defendant has a prior
conviction under these provisions.
   The bill would require a judge, upon sentencing the defendant, to
consider whether the defendant has made an appropriate public
apology.
  The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local
agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the
state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that
reimbursement.
   This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this
act for a specified reason.
   Vote:  majority.  Appropriation:  no.  Fiscal committee:  yes.
State-mandated local program:  yes.


THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:


  SECTION 1.  Section 374.9 is added to the Penal Code, to read:
   374.9.  (a) A person shall not, in the course of doing business,
discharge or release a chemical known to the state to cause cancer or
reproductive toxicity into water or onto land where the chemical
passes or is likely to pass into any source of drinking water, except
as provided in Section 25249.9 of the Health and Safety Code.
   (b) A person shall not, in the course of doing business, expose
any individual to a chemical known to the state to cause cancer or
reproductive toxicity without first providing clear and reasonable
warning to the individual, except as provided in Section 25249.10 of
the Health and Safety Code.
   (c) A person who negligently commits an act in violation of
subdivision (a) or (b) is punishable by a fine of not less than two
thousand five hundred dollars ($2,500) nor more than ten thousand
dollars ($10,000) for each day in which the violation occurs, or by
imprisonment in a county jail for not more than six months, or by
both that fine and imprisonment.  If a person convicted under this
subdivision has a prior conviction for a violation of any provision
of this section, the current violation shall be punishable by a fine
of not more than twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000) for each day
in which the violation occurs, or by imprisonment in a county jail
for not more than one year, or by both that fine and imprisonment.
   (d) A person who knowingly commits an act in violation of
subdivision (a) or (b) is punishable by a fine of not less than five
thousand dollars ($5,000), nor more than twenty-five thousand dollars
($25,000) for each day in which the violation occurs, by
imprisonment in the state prison for not more than two years, or by
both that fine and imprisonment.  If a person convicted under this
subdivision has a prior conviction for a violation of any provision
of this section, the current violation shall be punishable by a fine
of not more than fifty thousand dollars ($50,000) for each day in
which the violation occurs, or by imprisonment in the state prison
for not more than three years, or by both that fine and imprisonment.
  A corporation or other organization that violates this subdivision
and that has a prior conviction for a violation of any provision of
this section is punishable by a fine of not more than one million
dollars ($1,000,000), and the Secretary of State shall revoke its
authority to act as a corporate entity in the state.
   (e) Upon sentencing a person or entity convicted of a violation of
this section, the judge shall consider whether the defendant has
expressed remorse for the acts underlying the conviction.  In
assessing the defendant's level of remorse, the judge shall consider
whether the defendant has made an appropriate public apology that
reflects the nature of the violation and the number of potential
victims.  However, a public apology shall not exempt the defendant
from the punishment specified in subdivision (d).
  SEC. 2.  Section 1191.10 of the Penal Code is amended to read:
   1191.10.  The definition of the term "victim" as used in Section
1191.1 includes  any   the following:
   (a) Any  insurer or employer who was the victim of workers'
compensation fraud for the crimes specified in Section 549 of this
code, Sections 2314 and 6152 of the Business and Professions Code,
Sections 1871.4, 11760, and 11880 of the Insurance Code, and Section
3215 of the Labor Code.  
   (b) Any individual who was exposed to a chemical discharged or
released in violation of subdivision (a) of Section 374.9 or exposed
without proper warning in violation of subdivision (b) of Section
374.9. 
  SEC. 3.  No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to
Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution because
the only costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school
district will be incurred because this act creates a new crime or
infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the penalty
for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of Section 17556 of the
Government Code, or changes the definition of a crime within the
meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California
Constitution.